I go through a lot of butter. Several pounds a month. Domestic butter, Irish butter, salted, unsalted... I've even started snacking on butter. I'll put a half-pat in my cheek and let it dissolve. it's delicious.

But I can't help but feel that there's something missing from my life. It can't possibly be a good thing to have one source of fat be so dominant in my diet.

I'm not picky about my coconut oil. I just buy whatever organic, extra virgin coconut oil I see at the time. It's available all around me, in stores and online, so when I'm low I grab some. I haven't noticed a big difference in quality in any I've used over the years. Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, Vitamin Shoppe, Von's, amazon, Walgreens, I've satisfactorily bought EVCO from all of them.

The only thing I've noted recently is that nutiva has changed their jar design in some way, and it leaks more often. I will think twice about buying that brand for that reason, though it's nice and cheap from amazon.

Extra virgin has a mild coconutty smell and taste, so be aware of that. Refined is tasteless, and has a higher smoke point.

That's annoying about the jar. I think I have a lifetime supply of nutiva, though. I get mine at costco in the jar as big as my abdomen.

Another source of fat that I like, if you're not already eating it, is avocado. Most days I'll eat a whole avocado, or at least a half. If I don't have any ripe ones on hand, I'll usually have some "avocadro's number" from trader joe's. I just eat it plain, w a little salt.

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jayne, type I diabetic and mama to two sweet boys (9/03 and 2/09)

Yeah, I'm mad at nutiva for that. I wish I realized it before I threw out the last jars, or I would have just transferred the lot. These are the 15oz jars, and every time I pick one up, it's slick on the sides. I hate it, and I keep wiping wiping wiping, to no avail. I don't pour from it, I use spoons, but it's just screwed up.

Well about lard homemade lard is fine but I just looked at a package
of lard in the grocery store and now it is partialy hydrogenated. This
means it now contains some trans fats which we all know are verry
bad for us. And it realy is a pity they did this because the shelf life
was realy long without this hydrogenation. Years ago coconut oil got
an undeserved reputation for being bad for your heart. When this was
looked into closer it was discovered they were looking at hydrogenated
coconut oil which is indead bad for your heart. But unhydrogenated
coconut oil is good for your heart.

The Nutiva is my favorite and put 3 tbl. In my coffee every morning with hwc. I buy the huge container either from Netrition or Costco. It must be the smaller container that had the problem, because I've never had a problem and I've been buying it for over one and 1/2 years. Ironically, as I live in the cold pacific northwest, the stuff is always hard-rock solid

I also use a ton of melted butter and olive oil combined which I adore for sautéing garlic and pretty much any veggies!

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376/199/180
I've got a new attitude 12/04/06
And an even newer UPDATED attitude 9/1/2012

I like Nutiva and a certain store brand I can't name on here. The Nutiva from Costco is slightly cheaper than that brand, though, so I'm converted. Spectrum Natuals unrefined coconut oil is great, too.

I use butter, bacon grease/lard, coconut oil, and cold pressed oil like sesame and olive oil.

Personally, I think that butter is fine if that's what you like. I love the Pulgra brand. It is so rich and creamy. I don't really use much else either. I will use olive oil to lightly fry something in though. I say why NOT use butter? :-)

I recently found cacoa butter at WF. I am using that here and there, but I do go easy on it because it has theobromide--a caffiene like substance that I'm sensitive to. A little in my morning coffee is nice, though.

Hoo boy! Do not buy it. it is not sustainbly farmed, its hugely controversial because of the habitate damage the planters are doing, and the by product waste is creating toxic waste piles. Google it with orangatang for example.

I use EVOO on my tuna and to make salad dressing. I use lard when frying anything. I use butter/ghee for everything else. So it's my main source of fat too (I probably go through a stick every couple of days). Nothing wrong with butter if it works for you.

Spectrum makes a REFINED coconut oil that has virtually no taste. I use this for my general sauteeing when I don't want any coconutty flavor. The unrefined are the ones that will have a mild coconut flavor. I personally love the flavor, but do not like all my food tasting like it, so I reserve my unrefined for smoothies, sweet baked goods, etc.

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Tracey
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"...had we been discussing disorders of growth - why some people grow to be more than seven feet tall and others never make it to four feet - the only subject of discussion would be the hormones and enzymes that regulate growth. And yet, when we're discussing a disorder in which the defining symptom is the abnormal growth of our fat tissue, the hormones and enzymes that regulate that growth are considered irrelevant."
- Gary Taubes, Why We Get Fat

I like Nutiva, it's neutral with very little coconut flavor.
I purchased spectrum locally and it had (to me) a very strong coconut smell and taste, so I would only use it for things I wanted the flavor in, like curries.
People on here were raving about Tropical Traditions, so I bought some and the flavor was really strong, so I didn't like it either.

I get Trader Joe's Organic Virgin Coconut Oil. I love it, but it does have a fairly strong coconut taste so I use it mainly for sautéing veggies when I'm cooking any asian-type foods and I use it in my coffee in the morning.

Google: foodrenegade how to choose a good coconut oil

Edit to add: There is also lots to be learned from the comments after the article; a lot of discussion/opinions on specific brands and things like that

I'm a big fan of Tropical Traditions organic EPCO (expeller-pressed coconut oil - no coconut smell/taste) and I also buy their organic VCO (smells and tastes like coconuts) - but I also just bought the ginormous plastic vat of Nutiva at Costco. Haven't opened it yet, but it was a great price - so I'll try it!

Bacon grease and lard aren't the same thing - lard is usually processed from the leaf fat of the hog (fat around the kidneys) and of course, bacon grease is rendered when you cook cured and/or smoked bacon, so it does have a flavor. Good lard is pretty mild-tasting. There still IS some non-hydrogenate lard, but you have to look hard for it - and I don't recall the brand off the top of my head. I love cooking with it though, it has a high smoke point and adds just a skosh of that good flavor to whatever you cook in it.

I DO also save my rendered bacon grease, because, well, it tastes like BACON! Wonderful for frying pork chops, adding a blop to cooking water for green beans or any type of greens like kale, collard, etc. - and nothing can beat it for frying eggs, IMHO!

I also use rice bran oil (high smoke point, not overly processed - Fawn turned me on to this a few years ago), EVOO and extra-light OO, and plenty of BUTTAH, Baby. Yum.

Sigh. It's SO hard to eat this way.

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It's easy to be miserable. Being happy takes more work. ~~from Ondine, the movie~~

My Costco doesn't have Nutiva but they had a different brand (I think it was their own brand, I don't remember) but I haven't tried it yet.

My Costco doesn't have Nutiva either, it has a brand called Carrington Farms which is organic, extra-virgin, unrefined, cold-pressed. I hope it's good because I already bought two 54 oz. jars for when my Nutiva runs out.

I do love avocados too, but just don't eat them enough. Someone mentioned eating them plain with salt - I most often eat them with salt and a little lime or lemon juice.

Not a fan of coconut oil though, but I don't like coconut much either.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bella

I try to buy extra CO when on sale . . preferably organic.

Anyone eat lard? It gets a bad rap.
I have a friend who literally gasps if I say the L word.
It does make good pie crusts, not that I can eat those anymore.

What about palm oil? I haven't tried or even know where to get it but it is described as a medium chain triglyceride.

Quote:

Originally Posted by E.W.

Well about lard homemade lard is fine but I just looked at a package
of lard in the grocery store and now it is partialy hydrogenated. This
means it now contains some trans fats which we all know are verry
bad for us. And it realy is a pity they did this because the shelf life
was realy long without this hydrogenation. Years ago coconut oil got
an undeserved reputation for being bad for your heart. When this was
looked into closer it was discovered they were looking at hydrogenated
coconut oil which is indead bad for your heart. But unhydrogenated
coconut oil is good for your heart.

I wish I could find a source at the store without the yucky stuff. I didn't realize the first time I bought it unfortunately. I love to deep fry with it so I want more than just a little at a time. If I made my own I wouldn't have enough.

I keep meaning to try a local store that specializes in Latin America foods including a good pre-cooked foods/deli section. Someone once mentioned that those kinds of stores will carry it. The store makes fresh pork rinds too which are so much better than the stuff in the package.